Academy Award for Visual Effects

The Academy Award for Visual Effects is an Oscar given to one film each year that shows highest achievement in visual effects. The category was called Best Special Effects when it was created in 1939. In 1963, the category was split into two: Best Special Visual Effects and Best Sound Effects. In 1972, the Academy stopped giving out awards for Visual Effects and instead gave Special Achievement Awards. However, this only happened for a handful of years; the category soon became an annual competitive award. The category was changed again in 1996 when it became simply Best Visual Effects. In 2007, it was decided that 15 films would be chosen, to get a wider range, and then break it down into 7, and then vote for the final three nominees. For a film to be nominated for this award, the effects artist must have created something not available for filming. For example, an entirely digital Empire State Building could not make a movie eligible, since one can easily film the building; on the... full article at wikipedia